Bidders interested in acquiring the media company founded by conspiracy theorist Alex Jones will battle it out at a bankruptcy auction on Wednesday, potentially silencing its Infowars broadcast platform for good.
But the identities of potential buyers are not being disclosed because they had to agree to non-disclosure agreements to receive bidding materials. Jones says his fate and the future of his company, Free Speech Systems, depends on who is successful: the entities that support him or the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims.
On his show Monday, amid pleas from listeners for subscriptions and the nutritional supplements he sells, Jones painted a picture of his potential buyers, describing a group of anonymous bidders as friendly financiers who would keep his show operating normally. Others, he said, were “bad guys” who would shut down Infowars.
Although he said he would continue broadcasting through an alternative channel if a new buyer ordered him to close, Jones noted he would be hampered by the loss of his brand, website and equipment, among other things.
“You leftists who celebrate the end of Alex Jones and Infowars, you are fools,” he said. “Just look.”
A number of potential buyers have been put forward in recent weeks, from some who have spoken publicly about their interest, including Roger Stone, a longtime ally of newly elected President Donald Trump, to others who have taken to social media to consider the possibility. , such as tech billionaire Elon Musk and the owners of the satirical news site The Onion. Stone, Musk and The Onion did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The auction firms that organized the sale said there are “no restrictions on the use of any property acquired in the bankruptcy order” and that the winner will have the freedom to continue Infowars’ operations or not.
Ultimately, the federal court-appointed trustee, Christopher Murray, will distribute the money from the sale, which is intended to satisfy the estate’s creditors, who largely consist of the families of the Sandy Hook victims to whom Jones must pay compensation for defamation statements.
Up for grabs are Infowars production rights and materials, the Infowars store, domain names, production equipment and other assets – including a Terradyne armored truck and a Winnebago camper – which can be purchased in whole or in parts, the ThreeSixty firm said . Wealth advisors. Jones broadcasts from the Austin, Texas area. Anything that doesn’t sell would be part of a second auction next month.
The company told The Associated Press that there were a large number of questions among potential bidders.
Jay Westbrook, a bankruptcy law professor at the University of Texas, said the ultimate goal would be to achieve “maximum returns for the victims.”
The auction process itself is usually quick, he added, “but if an interested party objects to the procedure, a hearing may take place which delays the final outcome. Given the political situation, I would not be surprised if an objection is raised.” “
Callie Kalny, co-director of the Center of Media Psychology & Social Influence at Northwestern University, said that regardless of who wins, Jones has made it clear that he will continue broadcasting in some form, including on Musk-owned X .
“Of course, the fact that a supporter wins the auction may make operations a little easier for him, but as long as there are people who want to hear his message, he will likely continue to share it,” she said. “In other words, you can remove Alex Jones from Infowars, but you can’t separate him from that ethos. These core principles and approach to understanding the world are unlikely to go away simply because the platform or brand changes.”
The auction is part of Murray’s “orderly wind-down process” under the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, which has overseen the final phase of the case against Jones, which stems from the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. .
The victims’ families have filed lawsuits in Connecticut and Texas, accusing Jones of defaming them on his show and causing them emotional distress by repeatedly suggesting that the shooting, in which a gunman killed 20 first-graders and six adults was a fraud.
Juries awarded the families nearly $1.5 billion, but they were unable to collect anything from Jones, who said he couldn’t afford that enormous sum. He filed for bankruptcy in late 2022, and a judge in June allowed him to liquidate his personal assets to help pay off the judgments.
Jones, 50, founded Infowars in 1999, which operates under Free Speech Systems. How much the auction could raise remains unclear, but the company itself owns about $6 million in cash and $1.2 million in inventory, according to previous court filings.
The families in the lawsuits in Texas and Connecticut have discussed the liquidation process in court, raising concerns about how the money will be distributed. Still, they have said, Jones’ loss of his business brings some responsibility for his past words.
During his 2022 trial in Texas, Jones generally blamed the “corporate media” for twisting his words and portraying him inaccurately, but he did not indicate how.
While Jones testified that he believes Sandy Hook was “100% real,” he has used the ongoing lawsuits to boost his listenership as he faces the loss of Infowars.
“We need more money to make sure we can stay at full strength as we continue our attack,” Jones said on his show Tuesday, while also saying he has another studio from which he can broadcast as Infowars to a “hostile buyer” goes.
Roy Gutterman, a communications professor at Syracuse University and director of the Tully Center for Free Speech, said it seems unlikely that Jones will retreat after his decades of incendiary rhetoric.
“Despite the verdict, Alex Jones still has the right to express his opinion and continue to speak about anything he wants,” he said. “New statements may create new potential liability, but this appears to be a risk he is willing to take.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
